TextyConverterbeta
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JSON ↔ TSV Converter

Convert a JSON array of objects to TSV (tab-separated), or parse TSV into JSON. Free, browser-only.

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About JSON ↔ TSV Converter

Tab-separated values (TSV) is a close cousin of CSV that uses a tab character instead of a comma as the field delimiter. Because tabs are extremely rare inside actual data, TSV often avoids the quoting gymnastics that CSV needs. This converter handles JSON ↔ TSV in both directions with optional RFC-4180-style quoting for any field that does contain a tab, quote, or newline.

When to use it

  • Pasting JSON data into a spreadsheet — Excel and Google Sheets accept tab-delimited paste natively
  • Exporting from BigQuery, Postgres COPY, or other systems that prefer TSV
  • Working with data where commas appear inside cells and CSV quoting would be noisy
  • Migrating tabular API data into tools that explicitly expect TSV input

How it works

JSON → TSV: the array's objects are flattened into rows with the union of their keys as the header. Each value is stringified (objects/arrays as embedded JSON, null/undefined as empty). Fields containing a tab, quote, or newline are wrapped in double quotes with embedded quotes doubled. TSV → JSON: a parser reads tab-separated fields with the same quoting rules, treating the first row as the header.

Examples

JSON → TSV
[
  {"id": 1, "name": "Ada"},
  {"id": 2, "name": "Grace"}
]
id	name
1	Ada
2	Grace
TSV → JSON
id	city
1	New York
2	San Francisco
[
  {
    "id": "1",
    "city": "New York"
  },
  {
    "id": "2",
    "city": "San Francisco"
  }
]

Frequently asked questions

When should I use TSV over CSV?
Use TSV when your data routinely contains commas (addresses, prose, money amounts in European format). Tabs almost never appear in real text, so TSV usually needs no quoting at all.
Can I paste TSV directly into Excel?
Yes. Copy the TSV output and paste into a single cell — Excel and Google Sheets automatically split it across columns. This is often easier than going through the CSV import dialog.
What about tab characters inside cells?
Cells containing a tab are wrapped in double quotes, just like CSV's handling of embedded commas. The output remains a valid TSV that round-trips through this tool.
Are values typed?
No — TSV has no type system, so the JSON output is all strings. Convert types in a post-processing step if needed.

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